Getting ready to order my C7 vert and I'm still on the fence with the transmission choice. I've always owned manual Corvettes but I understand the new paddle shifter is pretty good.

I was leaning towards the auto but I will autocross the car and feel a manual might be better for that purpose.

What about it guys, do any of you who bought a manual wish you bought an auto or the other way around?

 

I have got the A8 for a variety of reasons, but depending on traffic or my mood I do sometimes feel a certain lack of connectedness and miss having a manual. An acquaintance got the M7 and sometimes wishes he had an A8.

This is a very common question. Try a search for lots of input elsewhere.

 

If possible take an auto for a test drive. I took both the A8 and the M7 for test drives prior to placing my order.
For me it was not even close I chose the M7, just a whole different driving experience.

 

My first two Vettes were automatic and this one going to be a manual. Early 60's here and it's been many years since I had a manual transmission. Can't wait to drive it, being retired and not driving as much as I used too, made this a easy decision for me. It's manual this time around for me !!

 

Bought a manual and no regrets, but I knew that when I ordered it.

If you are on the fence, it only makes sense to drive both and decide.

 

I'm loving my M7 Z. Wouldn't look back, nor ever think of having an A8. Love shifting the vehicle and feeling the road. Best Vette I have owned by far. From your own words, you have the answer already. You have to make the decision on what you want. Not us strangers. All I can say is that the M7 is a beast and shifts well. Better than my GS.

The little lady has paddle wheel shifters in her car, and neither of us use them. Of course. Its not a vette.

 

you are planning on auto crossing the car, get the M7 don't forget Z51 pkg

 

I was really planning to get the auto. I tried the auto and the manual and I got the manual. It is just fun to drive. I love it. I do not do a lot of city driving, however.

 

For me the manual was a no brainer; I completely enjoy the driving experience with it. As far as automatics go, the 8-speed offered in the Corvette is a fine transmission but it doesn't provide the same type of driving experience as a manual; only you can decide which you prefer.

FWIW, I drove a 2015 Z06 with automatic this past weekend. As fine of a machine as it is, if I had the opportunity to trade my 7-speed manual Z51 for an 8-speed automatic Z06 even up, I wouldn't do it. I know that sounds crazy but that's how much more I enjoy driving a manual. YMMV.

 

I am on my 5th Corvette with the first four being manual. I went to the A8 with my 15 Z51 and could not be happier. I still have fun with the paddle shifter. It is very responsive and the car sounds great (flaps stay open) when using it in Sport mode.

 

If you want the true driving experience, get the manual. If you are planning on tracking the car, get the manual (no known overheating issues). If you are wanting to have fun while driving and being engaged with the car, get the manual.

If you plan on daily commuting in heavy traffic, are just going to cruise around in the car, and floor it on occasion, get the auto.

Also get the auto if numbers on paper mean something to you, i.e. my car is two to three tenths faster than your manual.

I bought the M7 with Z51. To me it is the all around best and most spirited package you can get for the money.

No regrets.

 

M7

 

If I correctly understand the A8 documentation, and if I read correctly what other forum members have indicated in various threads, unless you run the A8 in MANUAL mode, the engine is ALWAYS able to slip into V4 mode if not under acceleration.

Forget it! If I have to manually shift to avoid V4 mode, it will be with a real manual.



Once I read that no matter what mode an A8 runs in (short of operating in manual mode) it can switch to V4 mode, no way for me.

I'm going with an M7 in my 2016 Z06 order and will never run it in ECO mode.

Love the visceral feel of old fashioned, HiPo American V8 power driven through the experience of a genuine manual transmission.

All *** or no *** for me. No half ***.

 

The C7 is my fourth Corvette. Two were used low mileage units and two were new. The used cars were both automatics, both new were ordered with manual transmissions. I like the manual transmission cars, more fun to drive. The next Corvette will be ------ another manual.

 

I have an M7, and not the slightest regret...have owned a number of autos, and they are.....well, auto.

Had a Cadillac STS and Lexus 350 awd auto, and they are/were just plain sloppy. Maybe it's an age thing, but being out with my M7 manual, blasting the tunes and shifting the gears, is, for me, what I really enjoy...

A8 may be faster, but I'm just "in the zone"...

Ken

 

Manual trans fan here; all my Vette's that I have ordered for myself have been three peddle cars. BUT after driving several students C7's (A8's and M7's) on the track, I was left sitting on the fence. I bought my new '15 Z51 off the local Chevy lot that had everything I was looking for and happened to be an A8. Over the past two months I have made to road trips (5K miles between the two) plus spent two days on the new NCM track in Bowling Green. I can honestly say that I do NOT miss the third peddle! The A8 will do everything the manual will do.....even better. I can shift up and down in mid corner without upsetting the car, even under heavy G-loads. I find that pretty awesome as a track driver!

The only advantage I can see the manual has over the auto is slightly (perhaps 1 MPG) better mileage in slow traffic or stop light driving because the converter doesn't get a chance to lock up. It's a personal thing, for me it was a good choice.

 

This is the first slushbox I've owned in 35 years spanning nine cars, and making this selection wasn't easy. Some road testers and owners have commented that seven gears are too many and the driver can sometimes get lost in the shift pattern. One tester, Top Gear, opined that "...seven ratios is approximately six ratios too many: the Corvette’s third gear is good for everything from hill starts to autobahn charges." That's an exaggeration but I agree that this engine's broad power band doesn't really need that many gears. I suggest that you couldn't make the same argument with the A8, however, as the TCM doesn't get lost in the shifting and doesn't have a physical pattern to concentrate on, so it can negotiate eight gears without any downside that I'm aware of.

At first I had fleeting thoughts about getting an A8 just to try something different but the M7 had the edge, mostly because of cost and the fact that I just like to shift. My last slushbox was a Turbo 350 (3-speed) in a 1971 Camaro, and autos have come a long way since that time. What put me into an A8 was that I found a nifty TR car in a nearby dealer's showroom that I couldn't refuse. Had it been equipped with an M7 I would still have bought it, maybe even faster.

Now that I have it I do like it. It shifts very fast in spirited driving, undoubtedly faster than I could shift an M7, and I've only used the paddle shifter once just to try it, so I can't give a good critique of it. The tranny is so intelligent in its shifting that I have let it make all the decisions, as they always seem to be right. Punch it and it downshifts into what seems to be the perfect gear. Gas mileage is better than my C6 with M6, which is a pleasant surprise. I've had a few minor glitches that should be rectified by my upcoming TCM software update on Friday, but those do not add up to anything that might change my mind if I had it to do over again.

If I were to buy a new car the only hesitation I might have in selecting the A8 again would be the cost, as although I'm happy I'm not sure I'm happier than I would be with an M7 and $1800 in my pocket.

 

This girl has and loves the manual transmission. Didn't even consider automatic.

 

I love my A8!! I love paddle shifting when i want to and when in auto mode it's still fun as hell. With that being said, as much fun as the paddles are, it's NOT a manual. If you want the paddles because it feels like a manual, it doesn't. It won't give you the satisfaction a manual does if you love that feeling. But if you're like me, and love to just drive, and enjoy the car as a whole, the A8 is great!!!!

 

To me, shifting a manual is part of the fun of driving a sports car. But to each his own.